$50 a pound - anyone know how to backpack "lightly" ?

[mobiltoy]

I can get down to 30# for 3-4 days.  That said I have the minimum gear. Tarp, hammock, pack and bag come in at 12#s. Like some above I use down, wool, dried food but I take little water when I can usually access to water once I up on the mountain.  One change of socks and one upper garment only.  
I do carry a light 3 oz stove and fuel though.  I have found that after a couple of trips I start out carrying less and less.  Just inventory your pack after to see what you really don't need. Safety items are always there.
I have spent cold, wet, windy days out at a time.
On line backpacking sites have tons of ultra light tips and lists.   Good luck  Bill

[BradLantz]

"hammock"

I've wondered if a light weight hammock and a kiffaru type tarp over it wouldn't be the absolute best way ? but then if the temps drop below freezing I imagine a guy could get pretty cold ?

mobiltoy seems the lighter I want to go, the more expensive it is  

if I could find a good overhang I'd just camp under it, but not sure there's one in the new area I'm going into

[John Scifres]

Hammock Video  

There are all kinds of cool videos on youtube about ultralight camping.

[John Scifres]

Here is my Idaho Elk Camp.  That is my tent and my buddy's tarp.  He has used it all over and loves it.  I will be using a tarp this year. This was at about 9500 feet on the top of a mountain in central Idaho, 2006.  It was wicked cold out but we both slept well in our respective shelters.
 

Here's my tent with tarp vestibule.

 

A closer view of my friends tarp with poncho door.

 

The view from inside after a wet snow dropped about 6" during the night.  Silnylon will bend but it won't break.
 

[jay fedora]

I would highly suggest some sort of hammock. I use a military jungle hammock(2lb 6oz)if memory serves. Hammocks keep you off the ground and away from rocks. I have been told that when using one, that your sleeping bag rating changes a little. IE last time i was out it was around 29-34deg, but my bag is only rated at 45. I did cheat and bring some fleace. My total wieght on the pack was 18lbs. Food(oatmeal and hot chocolate), water(2.4qts), stove(Snow peak),Pan(snow peak) sleep system(hammock & a marmot summer bag, gregory pack  and finally some clean undies. We only went for 3 days  and we were not hunting, but what a great expierience good luck Jason Fedora

[ChuckC]

I am trying to get up the gumption to go the tarp / lean-to route this year...at least for part of the hunt.  I have never done this before and appreciate the info.  Kifaro stuff looks great, but really, I find it difficult to justify the expense (for me....others don't seem to have that problem).   John...thanks for the pix.

We all have our goblins in the night.  Mine is bears.  I am not (so far) afraid of bears in the light of day, and have had a couple pretty close encounters... but come dark... maybe not fear, but a real uncomfortable feeling sets in with the prospect of something out there "messing with my stuff" or God forbid...me or my hunting partner...and I can't see to protect it / us.  

That open end, or open side is a hurdle to overcome.  Silly cause I had a recent experience of a small mammal, we believe a squirrel, got between the rainfly and tent of my...pretty pricey nylon tent, and it basically removed one whole wall.   Once it started to go, it went... big time.   That said, having a wall like that provides no "protection" from a bear at all, but there is something there to keep the boogeyman out.     Guess I need to practice is all.
ChuckC

[doeboy]

I have a few questions and please excuse my ignorance; I have never been on a 10 day mountain hunt. Do you bring an Ax/saw to cut fire wood and such? Are you allowed to start a fire in these areas? Some of the items people omit, like binoculars and such I think I would want or need? If you trained with a pack of equal weight/size and felt comfortable with it is an extra pound or two matters? Just asking?

[John Scifres]

No ax or saw for me.  If fires are allowed, and that really depends on a lot of things, then you can gather wood easily enough.  You don't want or need a big fire on a bivy style hunt.  Mostly, I don't use a fire.

I take my binoculars.  But your question...
 

If you trained with a pack of equal weight/size and felt comfortable with it is an extra pound or two matters?

...can easily be asked in reverse.  In other words, do you really need that extra pound or two?  We take too much stuff in the woods with us.  There is nothing wrong with being a gear head.  But it does weigh on you on the trail.  Keep it simple.

[chesapeakeblend]

Yeah man you need to drop that heavy tent and go with a bivy from REI.  You could lose 3 pounds easy right there.

[tecum-tha]

* KIFARU for the tent over all the REI stuff, especially with the stove which adds heat and comfort. Their customer service is top notch ,too. You don`t have to carry extra fuel either. If you have the good stuff, you will never go back. I usually spend the whole elk season in camp and did it the hard way (1/2 of an austrian Army tent one year and luckily the weather was clear all the time). You will be fine for a couple of days, but then your body will feel tired without an external heat source.

* Since the weather is unpredictable in the mountains use clothing out of fibers which still keep you warm when wet.The stove will dry them quite fast either. More thinner layers are better than a few thicker ones.

*Elk hunting without binoculars is not very vise and will lessen your chance to spot them before they´ll spot or smell you.

* I use one of the new lock-blade swiss army knives and it has a saw as well(Rucksack model). For the small stove that is plenty. Saw is great for firewood and for splitting the pelvis bone while field-dressing.

* Dried foods with a high fat content for food
  (pemmican) about 4000 kcal/day or a little less if you want to loose some pounds :-)

just my 5 cents...

[Titan_Bow]

I hunt wilderness areas here in Colorado, I would NOT skimp on a GPS or binos.  I would however, lighten your shelter by about half, 5 pounds is really heavy for shelter for one.  
With my heavy Eberlsestock pack, packed for 8 days,  was 42-43 lbs.  This coming up year, I am going to lighten my pack up by getting rid of the Eberlestock and getting a technical pack from REI or the like.  
 Your overall sleeping system should be no more than 6-6.5lbs.(including bag, pad, and shelter), bring lightweight food (mountain house, etc). Dont need to have multiple sets of clothes (I carry one base layer, one layer of Microtec, and a lightweight goretex outer-layer. The only thing I bring multiples of are socks and underwear).  Use the Lithium AA's for your GPS, and only fire it up to mark wallows or rubs, and to find the tent in the dark.
  This doesnt cover everything, I know, but I think the your biggest weight items are your backpack, sleeping/shelter system, and clothing, so thats where you concentrate on reducing some weight.  
 Here are some pics of my hunt last year. (If you hunt somewhere with a 2000ft elevation gain on your hike in, 5-6 miles will feel much further than you think!)

     

[BobW]

I say no on the hammock - save the weight for something else.  Being cold and not on the ground means you will be colder..... ground insulates.

Lots of menu options - check the equipment stores for the "do-it-yourself" books.  Store food isnt tasty.... non-camping prepared foods are excellent and cost less too.

Think multi-use items.

for my clothese, it layers, layers, layers. If it is cold, everything is on, warm, and it is packed.  Not multiple outfits for different conditions.

Though I haven't combined it with hunting, I've done early spring in the Boundary Waters, and  October/November, January/February in Algonquin.

40# should work for you.

Have a good time, and also do a thread afterwards to continue the discussion.

[Titan_Bow]

You will freeze your butt off in elk country in a hammock.  Near treeline, the air is thin with low humidity, and it doesnt hold heat like the air does back east.  As soon as the sun goes down the temps start dropping fast. If you are in a hammock, you will need more sleeping bag than you would if you had a thermarest on the ground. A good 20 deg bag will do fine, but in a hammock, in a 20 deg bag, you are likely to freeze to death :-)

[BradLantz]

Titan-Bow - good to know that, thanks !

I don't take bino's or a GPS. I figure those to be luxury items I don't need.

we'll build fires at night I imagine, if nothing else to smell like smoke and use it like a cover scent.


I swear I don't know how ya'll keep your sleeping bags dry under just a little tarp like those !

[Titan_Bow]

Brad,
 In my opinion, the GPS is not a luxury item in the mountains, especially if you are going solo.  I can take my mind off land nav a little and hunt, and at dark find my tent easily. Also, this is big, big country, and looking across a drainage at the far hillside can easily be hal a mile or more.  Alot of times you will be lucky to spot a deer or elk like that with the naked eye.  I would say during the coarse of a hunting day, I use my binos and GPS more than probably anything else besides my feet :-)

[Labs4me]

Brad:

Lots of good advice offered so far. To mirror John Scifres suggestion- start with a good book on the subject. Similarly, get yourself to a specialty backpacking outfitter and talk to experienced backpackers. More than likely, you won't find them at Walmart.

40 pounds is definitely doable. I've hiked longer with as little. Much of "going lite" has to do with structuring your pack based on the principle redundancy without duplication - meaning, each item you carry should be able to serve as a backup for something else. For instance, a rain jacket is not just a rain jacket, but it's a bucket, a vestibule, a ground cloth and a day pack (roll it around other gear, bungee it closed and tie it around your waste). Likewise, a bivy rain fly can also be used to carry/collect water, to keep your pack dry during a wet hike, or as a backup rain poncho.

Remember too, that your pack will quickly become lighter with each passing meal. To save weight to allow for some other "luxuries" on your trip, often you can get by with just a single quick "meal" on day one (romain noodles, "bullion soup" and tang for desert- mmmmm good!). Also, if your level of fitness will allow you to endure a heavier pack for the first day or two - when you're at your strongest - you can often take more than you originally thought was possible because by day three you'll be carrying significantly less food weight.

Part of the "fun" of backpacking is trying to get by with as little as possible- within the realm of staying safe.

[BradLantz]

Titan-Bow I know, I just never used them and don't see a need to start now. My buddy thats going with me will have his GPS for certain.

Labs4me I guess this spring what I need to do is get my stuff down, lay it out, pack it tight and weigh it, then start trimming stuff from there.

We're not so much bivy hunting as lightweight camp hunting. That we're walking in a few miles makes the lighter packs more desireable and if we need to move after a couple of days thats an option to.

I know where we're going wont' be more than 4-5 hours of hiking - thats a full day (in/out) if when we get an elk down.

Two of us sharing the weight of the camp will help too.

[Lost Arra]

>>>Labs4me I guess this spring what I need to do is get my stuff down, lay it out, pack it tight and weigh it, then start trimming stuff from there.<<<

Please don't take this as being argumentive but why weigh it? Why not get your stuff laid out, pack it tight and go for a hike. If it's too heavy start trimming. If it feels good, go with it. Who cares if it weighs 35# or 45#? Proper weight distribution and a good pack can make a heavier load feel fine, especially with some training.

Labs makes some great points. The heaviest load is the first one.

Good info by the founder of Kifaru:
  http://www.kifaru.net/possibls.htm

[BradLantz]

Lost Arra - I dunno, seems like less than 40# is a goal. I'd rather it be 20 pounds but that won't happen  

I'll be hiking all summer, adding that condition to my cardio work outs. I'll want me pack the way it will eb when I leave the trailhead -

[John Scifres]

I think I'm gonna work backwards this year.  I'm going to start with a tarp, 20 degree bag, and a 2500 cu. in. pack.  Add a couple meals and hike 3 miles in for a weekend.  See if I need anything I don't have and then add it for the next trip.  How dead can I get in a weekend 3 miles from the car?